Heat sink for a cooking appliance

ABSTRACT

A heat sink for LEDs or other electronic elements in a kitchen appliance is provided. The chassis or other heat conducting components of the appliance are used as a heat sink to conduct away heat. The LEDs or other electronic features may be connected directly to the heat sink or may be connected by e.g., a bracket.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a heat sink for LEDs or other electronicelements in a kitchen appliance.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Modern kitchen appliances are frequently provided with various featuresthat rely upon electronics for operation. For example, a range hood oroven may include a processing device mounted on a printed circuit board(PCB) and connected with a touch panel or other device whereby the usermay select various options for operation of the appliance. For an oven,such PCB might include different, user selectable cooking algorithmsbased on the food and/or mode of cooking desired. The PCB typicallyassociated with such features is electrically-powered and generates heatduring operation. If the PCB becomes too hot, the electronics may ceaseto operate properly or even become permanently damaged.

Some appliances may also be equipped with lighting features that relyupon light emitting diodes (LEDs) to provide illumination. For example,a range hood or an over the range microwave oven may include various LEDbulbs to light up a cook top. Such lighting may be important to the useras the cook top will typically have several heating elements positionedon a horizontal surface for cooking food contained in pots and pans.

For these applications, LED lighting has certain advantages as comparedto incandescent or other types of lights. These advantages can includee.g., resistance to vibration, long life expectancy, relatively lowenergy use, durability for repeated on-off switching, and compactness.In addition, where more light is needed, LED bulbs can be groupedtogether to increase the intensity of the light output.

However, there are certain challenges to using LED lamps in a kitchenappliance. As with a PCB, LED lamps can produce a significant amount ofheat and are susceptible to poor operation if their temperature risestoo high. More particularly, there is generally a narrow range oftemperatures at which LED lamps can efficiently produce their maximumlight output or most efficient light output. In addition, if thetemperature elevates above a certain range, the LEDs can be damaged oreven destroyed.

As such, an appliance must provide for properly cooling electronics andLED lamps during operation. Such can be a difficult task with a kitchenappliance because of the heat that is generated from cooking. Forexample, LED lamps are sometimes provided in a range hood to providelighting above the cook top. Heat coming from the cook top and/or anassociated oven will rise up and through the range hood. Depending uponthe placement of the LED lamps, this heat can provide furthertemperature problems for LED lamps by advancing the temperatureincrease. Similar problems can be created for a PCB or other electronicsif positioned where they can be affected by heat from cooking.

Accordingly, a system for the effective cooling of LED lamps or otherelectronics in a kitchen appliance would be useful. A system that canuse structural and other features of the appliance to facilitate suchcooling would be beneficial. Such a system that can be readilyincorporated within the overall design of an appliance would also bevery useful.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in thefollowing description, or may be obvious from the description, or may belearned through practice of the invention.

In one exemplary aspect of the present invention, a method for coolingan electronic component in a kitchen appliance is provided. The methodincludes the steps of selecting a position on the kitchen appliance thatwill facilitate the conduction of heat away from the electroniccomponent; placing the electronic component in thermal contact with thekitchen appliance at such position; and conducting heat from theelectronic component to the appliance.

In another exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides akitchen appliance. The appliance includes an electronic componentproviding one or more features for the appliance and a heat conductingelement that forms part of the kitchen appliance. The electroniccomponent is thermally connected with the heat conducting element suchthat heat generated by the electronic component is conducted to the heatconducting element.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdescription and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which areincorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrateembodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serveto explain the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including thebest mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is setforth in the specification, which makes reference to the appendedfigures, in which:

FIG. 1 provides an exemplary embodiment of an appliance, in this examplea range hood, as may be used with the present invention.

FIG. 2 provides a cross-section view of an exemplary embodiment of arange hood as may be used with the present invention.

FIG. 3 provides a cross-section view of another exemplary embodiment ofa range hood as may be used with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a heat sink for LEDs or other electronicelements in a kitchen appliance. The chassis or other heat conductingcomponents of the appliance are used as a heat sink to conduct awayheat. The LEDs or other electronic features may be connected directly tothe heat sink or may be connected by e.g., a bracket.

Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention,one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Eachexample is provided by way of explanation of the invention, notlimitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be madein the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit ofthe invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as partof one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield a stillfurther embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present inventioncovers such modifications and variations as come within the scope of theappended claims and their equivalents.

FIG. 1 provides an exemplary embodiment of the present invention as arange hood 10 installed within kitchen cabinetry 22. Range hood 10includes a user interface 20 that has multiple controls 42 as may beused to activate a fan, lights, or other features. Range hood 10 ispositioned over an oven 18 that includes a horizontal, cook-top surface14 having multiple heating elements 16 positioned thereon. Heatingelements 16 may be e.g., electrically-powered or gas fueled and provideheat for cooking food placed into pots or pans and positioned onto suchelements 16. Oven 18 includes a cavity, positioned behind door 19, intowhich food items may be placed for baking and/or broiling.

During operation of oven 18, heat and cooking fumes are generated fromheating elements 16 and/or the baking or broiling in the cavity. Thisheat will rise upwardly, towards range hood 10. As such, at least someof the heat from cooking operations will heat range hood 10 and itsassociated lighting and other electronic features.

FIG. 2 provides a cross-sectional view of range hood 10. For thisexemplary embodiment, range hood 10 includes an LED lamp 30 that isoperated by one or more of the controls 42 positioned on user interface20. Wiring 38 connects LED lamp 30 with control 42. Although only asingle LED lamp 30 is shown, a plurality of LED lamps could bepositioned about range hood 10 depending upon the amount of lightdesired.

In the configuration shown, LED lamp 30 provides light for theillumination of cook-top surface 14 on range 12. More specifically, LEDlamp 30 provides light through an opening 44 in an upper appearancepanel 32. Additional openings can be provided for other LED lampspositioned in range hood 10 as desired.

A typical LED lamp can provide more light, and is more efficient atproducing light, as temperature decreases. During operation of LED lamp30, it will generate a significant amount of heat that can bedeleterious to its proper functioning. In addition, the heat generatedfrom cooking with oven 18 further exacerbates the problem by providingadditional heat that can adversely affect LED lamp 30.

Accordingly, LED lamp 30 is in thermal contact with a mounting panel 34,which forms part of the frame or chassis 46 of range hood 10. As shownin FIG. 2, LED lamp 30 is attached directly to panel 34 and, as such,heat generated by lamp 30 will be conducted to panel 34. In turn,because panel 34 is constructed from a conductive material such as ametal, heat will be conducted through panel 34 to other parts of thechassis 46 of range hood 10 thereby improving its efficiency as a heatsink for lamp 30. Panel 34 is shown as a flat sheet in FIG. 2. However,other configurations and shapes for panel 34 may be used as well. Inaddition, lamp 30 can also be placed on heating conducting elements usedto construct range hood 10.

Mounting panel 34 is positioned behind upper appearance panel 32. Moreparticularly, with respect to the flow of heat rising upwardly from oven18, panel 34 is shielded from such heat by upper appearance panel 32. Assuch, mount panel 34 is protected from the heat generated by cooking soas to improve its ability to conduct heat away from LED lamp 30.

In addition, range hood 10 is constructed in a manner that uses naturalconvection to help further cool LED lamp 30. Chassis 46 and vent duct 24form a chamber 48. As LED lamp 30 heats up during operation and, inturn, conducts heat to mounting panel 34, air within chamber 48 near thesurface of mounting panel 34 will be heated. The heated air will thenrise within chamber 48 to be displaced by cooler air falling down toreplace the heated air. This process of natural convection furthercontributes to the cooling of LED lamp 30.

Additionally, the placement of LED lamp 30 can be controlled to furtherimprove the cooling effects of mounting it to panel 34. Morespecifically, the placement of LED lamp 30 along upper appearance panel32 can be selected such that lamp 30 is not directly over a heat sourcefrom oven 18 such as one of the heating elements 16. The size of rangehood 10, i.e., the extent to which hood 10 projects out and overappliance 18 can also be increased in order to move LED lamp 30 furtheraway from a position directly above heat sources in oven 18.

FIG. 3 provides another exemplary embodiment of a range hood 10 in whichlike reference numerals to that of FIG. 2 represent identical or similarfeatures. Unlike FIG. 2, however, LED lamp 30 is placed into directthermal contact or communication with vent duct 24. In the example ofFIG. 3, LED lamp 30 is attached directly to the walls forming vent duct24. Light pipes 36 are used to transmit light produced by LED lamp 30 tothe opening 44 in upper appearance panel 32. Light is emitted from theterminal end 40 of light pipes 36 so as to project light onto cook-topsurface 14 (FIG. 1). Light pipes 36 are provided by way of example only.Light sheets, fiber optics, and other devices may also be used fortransmitting light from LED lamp 30 towards cook-top surface 14.

By positioning LED lamp 30 directly into contact with vent duct 24, heatgenerated during operation of lamp 30 can be conducted directly to ventduct 24. By constructing vent duct 24 from a conductive material such asa metal, heat conducted from LED lamp 30 is turn conducted along ventduct 24, which in turn helps cool lamp 30. In addition, during operationof range 12, the user may activate fan 26 to draw heat and cooking fumesaway from range 12 and to an exhaust as shown by arrows A. The movementof air through vent duct 24 will also help cool vent duct 24 and improveits efficiency as a heat sink for LED lamp 30. As previously described,chamber 48 will also contribute to the cooling of LED lamp 30 throughnatural convection.

The above exemplary embodiments of the present invention were describedusing LED lamp 30. As will be understood by one of ordinary skill in theart using the teachings disclosed herein, the same principles can beused to provide for the cooling of a PCB or other electronics that needprotection from heat. For example, the PCB could be attached to mountingpanel 34 or other parts of the chassis 46 of range hood 10 for theconduction of heat away from the PCB. Similarly, the PCB could beattached to vent duct 24 to conduct heat away from the PCB in a manneras described above with regard to LED lamp 30. With both a PCB or LEDlamp 30, it should be understood that such may be directly connected toa heat sink such as chassis 46 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, or a mountingbracket may also be used to connect the PCB or LED lamp 30. In suchcase, preferably the mounting bracket is also constructed from aconductive material such as a metal so that thermal communication withthe heat sink is provided.

As will be understood by one of skill in the art using the teachingsherein, the present invention may be used with other appliances as welland is not limited to a range hood. For example, similar constructionsmay be used to provide cooling for the electronics found in an oven, amicrowave mounted over cook-top surface, and still other appliances aswell. In addition, the LED or PCB can be connected to other parts of theappliance that can operate as a heat sink, and the present invention isnot limited to the configurations shown in the figures. As such, itshould be understood that this written description uses examples todisclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable anyperson skilled in the art to practice the invention, including makingand using any devices or systems and performing any incorporatedmethods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims,and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art.Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims ifthey include structural elements that do not differ from the literallanguage of the claims, or if they include equivalent structuralelements with insubstantial differences from the literal languages ofthe claims.

1. A method for cooling an electronic component in a kitchen appliance,comprising the steps of: selecting a position on the kitchen appliancethat will facilitate the conduction of heat away from the electroniccomponent; placing the electronic component in thermal contact with thekitchen appliance at such position; and conducting heat from theelectronic component to the appliance.
 2. A method for cooling anelectronic component in a kitchen appliance as in claim 1, wherein saidselecting step further comprises determining a position that willfacilitate the transfer of heat away from the electronic component bynatural convection.
 3. A method for cooling an electronic component in akitchen appliance as in claim 1, wherein said selecting step compriseslocating the position on a part of the appliance that is constructedfrom a conductive metal.
 4. A method for cooling an electronic componentin a kitchen appliance as in claim 2, wherein said selecting stepfurther comprises locating the position on a part of the appliance thatforms part of the chassis of the appliance.
 5. A method for cooling anelectronic component in a kitchen appliance as in claim 1, wherein theappliance is a range hood and the electronic component is an LED lamppositioned in the range hood, the range hood having a mounting panelthat is not directly exposed to the heat source, and wherein said LEDlamp is placed into thermal contact with the mounting panel.
 6. A methodfor cooling an electronic component in a kitchen appliance as in claim1, wherein the appliance is a range hood having a vent duct, and whereinthe electronic component is an LED lamp positioned into thermal contactwith the vent duct such that heat is conducted from said LED lamp tosaid vent duct, the method further comprising the step of transmittingthe light from the LED lamp towards a surface positioned below the rangehood.
 7. A method for cooling an electronic component in a kitchenappliance as in claim 1, the kitchen appliance having a user interface,and wherein the electronic component is a PCB mounted into thermalcontact with the appliance such that heat is conducted from said PCB tosaid appliance, wherein said PCB is mounted a predetermined distanceaway from the user interface, and further comprising the step oftransmitting data input, data output, or both by a wired connectionbetween the user interface and the PCB.
 8. A method for cooling anelectronic component in a kitchen appliance as in claim 1, the kitchenappliance having a user interface, and wherein the electronic componentis a PCB mounted into thermal contact with the appliance such that heatis conducted from said PCB to said appliance, wherein said PCB ismounted a predetermined distance away from the user interface, andfurther comprising the step of transmitting data input, data output, orboth by a wireless connection between the user interface and the PCB. 9.A method for cooling an electronic component in a kitchen appliance asin claim 1, wherein said placing step comprises attaching the electroniccomponent directly to the appliance.
 10. A method for cooling anelectronic component in a kitchen appliance as in claim 1, wherein saidplacing step comprises attaching the electronic component to a bracketthat is attached directly to the appliance.
 11. A kitchen appliance,comprising: an electronic component providing one or more features forthe appliance; and a heat conducting element that forms part of thekitchen appliance; wherein said electronic component is thermallyconnected with said heat conducting element such that heat generated bysaid electronic component is conducted to the heat conducting element.12. A kitchen appliance as in claim 11, wherein the appliance is a rangehood, the appliance further comprising; an appearance panel, whereinsaid electronic component comprises an LED lamp providing light throughsaid appearance panel; and wherein said heat conducting elementcomprises a mounting panel located behind said appearance panel, saidLED lamp thermally connected to said mounting panel such that heatcreated by said LED lamp is conducted away from said LED lamp by saidmounting panel.
 13. A kitchen appliance as in claim 12, wherein said LEDlamp is attached directly to said mounting panel.
 14. A kitchenappliance as in claim 12, further comprising a bracket attached directlyto said mounting panel, and wherein said LED lamp is attached directlyto said bracket.
 15. A kitchen appliance as in claim 11, wherein theappliance is a range hood, the appliance further comprising a vent ductfor allowing the range hood to exhaust cooking fumes and heat, whereinsaid electronic component is placed into thermal communication with saidvent duct.
 16. A kitchen appliance as in claim 15, wherein saidelectronic component is attached to said vent duct.
 17. A kitchenappliance as in claim 15, wherein said electronic component is an LEDlamp that is attached to said vent duct, and further comprising meansfor transmitting light from said LED lamp towards a surface locatedbelow the range hood.
 18. A kitchen appliance as in claim 15, whereinsaid electronic component is a PCB board attached to said vent duct. 19.A kitchen appliance as in claim 18, further comprising: a user interfacefor operating the appliance; and a wired connection between said userinterface and said PCB board.
 20. A kitchen appliance as in claim 18,further comprising: a user interface for operating the appliance; and awireless connection between said user interface and said PCB board.